Veils of the Monsoon

Prologue: The shehnai played mournfully in the courtyard as monsoon rain drummed softly against the palace domes. Maharaja Aditya Singh Rathore stood still in his gold-embroidered angarkha, staring at the cradle before him. The newborn's cries filled the room, but all he could hear was the silence of the woman who had once been his anchor. Queen Meera, his childhood friend, his first love, had taken her last breath just hours ago, her hand slipping from his grip as she brought their daughter into the world. A month later, Aditya sat on the ivory throne, his crown heavy not with gold, but with grief. The court whispered: "The king is only twenty-nine... how long before he marries again?" But Aditya had no appetite for another marriage. His world now was his infant daughter, Rajkumari Anaya, and the endless duties of the crown.